Weed burner



Dec. 19, 1933. A. F. HowERY El' AL wEED BRNER Filed Nov. 25. 1929 2 Sheets-Sheet vl AITORN EY Dec. 19, 1933.' A. F. HowERY Er AL WEED BURNER Filed Nov. 25. 1929 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR Eff-2551 ATTORNEY n Patented Dec. 19, 1933 .UNITED STATES PATENT QFFICE WEED BURNER Application November 25, 1929 Serial. No. 409,702-

s claims. (crue-211.2

Our invention relates to weed burners, and is more particularly concerned with a mobile weed burning unit complete in itself and embodying features of construction and arrangement of parts promoting increased efliciency in operation and providing adaptability to a relatively -wide range of operating area as well as other advantages.

In the device of the present invention, a mobile unit, such as a railway car, motor or other power driven truck, .or the like provided with power transmission means, is utilized as a carrier, as a means for creating fluid pressure and as a supporting and positioning means forV a burning unit. A plurality of tanks or other receptacles for air and fluid fuel for the burning unit and for a fire extinguishing fluid, are mounted on this unit and pressure fluid, such as compressed air, preferably compressed. by some means connected with the power transmission of the mobile unit, is used to force the burner iiuids under pressure to a burner head, this latter being mounted on the end of a boom movably carried by the mobile unit to operate from all sides of the mobile unit. A burner head of special form is detachably secured to the outer end of the boom, and a reel of hose supported on the unit is connected to the extinguishing fluid tank for use when desired, fluid pressure to said tank being provided from the same source supplying the same to the fluid fuel tank. 'I'he extent of movement of the boom may be varied through adjustment of supporting connections therefor.

The invention consists in the constructions, arrangements and combinations hereinafter described and claimed, and will be more clearly apparent from the following detailed specification of its parts which is to be read in conjunction with the laccompanying drawings forming part thereof and illustrating a preferred form of the invention.

In these drawings:-

Figure 1 is a view in side elevation of a motor truck representing one form of mobile carrying unit and' embodying the device of the present invention.

Figure 2 is a top plan view thereof. l

Figure 3 is a view in rear elevation of the truck with the burner carrying boom.

Figure 4 is a top plan view of the burner unit showing its adjustable and detachable connection to the outer end of the swinging boom.

Figure 5 is a top plan View of the burner end of said unit on an enlarged scale.

Figure 6 is a. similar view in longitudinal section with the fuel tubes and heating coils in elevation.

Figure 7 is a detail in elevation of the hoist plunger and boom in plunger-raised,y boom-lowered position, with a plunger-lowered boomraised position shown in dotted lines.

Figure 8 is a detail perspective of the heat confining shield for the fuel coils and heating burner.

` Referring to the drawings, 1 indicates generally a motor truck representing one form of mobile unit which may be used. On the body of the truck is mounted a series of tanks 2, 3 and 4 constituting containers of compressed air, fiuid fuel and fire extinguishing fluid respectively. Between the foremost tank 2 and the truck cab, a fluid pressure cylinder 5 is vertically supported and houses for vertical movement a plunger 6 which is capable of being revolved in its housing about the vertical axis.

'I'he plunger 6 has a rod 8 which extends upwardly through a packing gland 7. A band or ring 9 is swivelly mounted on the cylinder 5 by collars 10 which are secured to the cylinder on each side'of the ring. Diametrically opposite sides of the ring 9 are arranged to pivotally support the lower ends of arms l1 and 12.

A boom operating lever v13 is pivotally mounted intermediate of its ends on the rod 8. One end of this lever is pivotally connected to the upper end of the supporting arm 11. The opposite end of the lever 13 is pivoted to the upper end of an arm 14 constituting a boom and extending outwardly from the truck.

The boom arm 14 is provided with a series of pivot receiving apertures 14a through a seleeted one of which a pivot stud 16 on the upper end of the second supporting arm 12 extends to pivotally mount the boom arm thereon. The lever 13, adjacent to its inner pivoted end, is provided with a series of pivot stud apertures 13a which may selectively receive a pivot bolt or the like which connects the lever end with the upper end of the first supporting arm 11.

These parts are shown in their relative positions with the plunger 6 elevated in Figures 3 and 7. In this position of the parts, the outer end of the boom arm (which carries a burner unit, as later described) will be swung downwardly inward toward the side of the truck body and toward the ground so that weeds and vegetation at the sides of the roadway may be reached by the burner unit, or with the boom swung to the rear of the truck body the roadway itself may be reached. v

With the plunger 6 lowered, as indicated in dotted lines, Fig. '1, the lever` arm 13, .fulcruming on the upper end of arm 12, swings its outer boom attached end downwardly, swinging the boom arm 14 on its arm pivot 16 and movingv its outer burner carrying end outwardly and upwardly to reach, for example, the side of an embankment adjacent to the roadway. The proportionate extent of throw of the boom and its relative rate of movement are'obviously controlled through the adjustment of the pivots in the apertures 13a and 14a.

The plunger or standard 6 may be raised and lowered in its cylinder 5 by various means such, for example, as fluid underpressure forced into the cylinder by means of a transmission-operated pump 17 and a conduit \18, Figure 1, extending therefrom to the cylinder base. Such an operating mechanism as well known, constitutes standard equipment for motor trucks in present day use for elevating and lowering dump bodies mounted thereon and'need not be further described in detail.

An air compressor 19 for supplying air to the air tank 2 and to the fuel and extinguishing tanks 3 and 4 to provide a forced feed pressure head is mounted on the truck body and may be driven, for example, through a sprocket gear 20 on a counter-shaft 21 geared with the drive shaft of the truck and operating the compressor through sprocket and chain connections 22 and 23. A conduit' 24 extends rearwardly from the compression chamber of the pump and communicates by valved branches 25 with the interior of the tanks 2, 3 and 4 at their tops, thus providing a common air supply for these tanks. A hose reel 26 mounted in bearing brackets 27 secured to and depending from the sides of the truck body, carries a hose 28 which extends from the interior of the extinguisher fluid tank 4 to the reel. Since it is necessary after burning weeds and other undesirable vegetation on and at the sides of a road area to extinguish all flames and sparks to prevent spreading of the fire beyond the desired area, the provision of such an extinguishing means forms a necessary and desirable feature of and addition to the burning equipment.

To the outer end of the boom arm 14, a

'burner unit is secured to extend therefrom at an angle. A preferred form of such burner is shown in Figures 4, 5 and 6 and comprises a tubular handle portion 29' whose outer and inner ends are closed and whose interior 30 (Fig. 6) constitutes a fuel receiving chamber. One end of the tubular handle portion 29 is detachably and adjustably secured to the outer end of the boom 14 as shown in Figure 4. Its other closed end, as shown in Fig. 6, is fixed to a cylindrical burner head midway of its length. This burner head has its opposite ends closed by internally threaded cups 32 and is traversed by fuel conduits 33 whose outer ends project from the exterior face of the head 31 and are provided with suitable burner nozzles 34. The other or rear ends of the conduits 33 extend to and communicate in staggered order with the interior of the fuel chamber 30, each of these conduits being formed with fuel pre-heating coils 34a. 'I'he interior of the cylinder 31 may be packed with asbestos or other similar insulating material to prevent dissipation of the heat from the fuel passing through the conduits 33 housed therein.

'I'he fluid fuel from tank 3 and the air from tank 2 are fed to the fuel chamber 30 by means of ilexible conduits 35 which communicate at their outer ends with the fuel chamber through suitable nipples as shown in Figure 6.

Mounted upon the exterior of the tubular handle portion 29 is a valved burner nozzle 36 to which fuel is fed from the fuel chamber 3 0 by means of a conduit 37 extending from the burner nozzle and communicating with the interior' .of the chamber as shown in Figure 5. In order to concentrate the heat from the flame of the burner 36 on the pre-heating coils 34a, the coils are enclosed by a shield 38, detailed in Figure 8. This burner will operate continuously while the apparairs is in use, the flame being cut oif by means of its valve whenthe operation is discontinued. The burner' nozzles 34 are preferably provided with spring pressed check valves opening in response to predetermined pressure of the fluid fuel thereagainst and closing and preventing escape of the fuel when vthe pressure is reduced and the burning operation discontinued. j

It will be noted that the tubular handle portion 29 of the burning unit may be detached from the outer end of the boom 14. 'I'his provision is made with a view to annual movement of the burning unit, the flexible conduits 35 having suil'lcient length to permit the unit to be moved to a point below the lowermost attainable position of the boom to reach, for example, weeds 'and other objectionable growthsdn ditches bordering a roadway which cannot be reached through the lowermost positioning of the boom through its operating connections previously described.

It will be evident that by properly-positioning the housing and hoist plunger 6 on the truck body, the boom arm may be swung so as to locate the burner unit where desired over the area at either side of the truck body or at the rear end of the truck so that the described equipment may advantageously operate upon both sides of a roadway or trackway or upon the roadway or trackway itself. The wheels of such a truck may be of the flanged railway type to adapt the vehicle to use upon railway trackage or the entire equipment may be mounted upon a railway car having power transmission devices which may be adapted to furnish the operating power for the hoist and compressor. f

While the described constructions and arrangements are exemplified in one form in which the invention may be embodied, they are intended as illustrative rather than restrictive and are subject to variation and modification to suit different conditions of manufacture and use in consonance with the spirit of the invention and 'the scope of the appended claims.

What we claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. In a device of the character described including a mobile unit, a fuel container thereon, a boom supported on and extending outwardly from said unit and adjustable thereon to variably position its outer end outwardly of and vertically relatively to said mobile unit; a burner unit having a head, a fuel nozzle carried by said head, a handle portion attached to the head and means for detachably connecting said handle portion to the outer end of said boom, said handle portion having a fuel receiving chamber therein, a exible fuel conduit extending from said container and communicating with said chamber, said means enabling bodily detachment of the burner unit from said boom end for manual manipulation independent of said boom.

2. In a device of the character described including a mobile unit, a fuel container thereon, a boom supported on and extending outwardly from said unit and adjustable thereon to variably position its outer end outwardly of and vertically relatively to said mobile unit; a burner unit comprising a handle portion and means for connecting said handle portion to the outer end of said boom, said handle portion having a fuel chamber therein, a conduit connecting the fuel chamber with the container, a head connected to one end of said handle portion, a nozzled fuel conduit extending from said chamber through said head and having a coil, the nozzle of said conduit being located outside of said head, a coil-heating burner carried by said handle portion having a conduit communicating with said chamber, and a shield enclosing said coil and burner to concentrate the heat of the burner on said coil.

3. In a device of the character described including a mobile unit, a fuel container thereon, a boomsupported on and extending outwardly from said unit and adjustable thereon to varlably position its outer end outwardly of and vertically relatively to said mobile unit; a burner unit comprising a tubular portion closed at one end and providing a fuel receiving chamber, :neans for connecting the tubular portion with the boom, a conduit connecting the fuel chamber with the container, a burner head attached to the closed end of said tubular portion, a plurality of burner nozzles carried by said head, a plurality of fuel supplying tubes communicating with said fuel chamber and with said nozzles and having coils, a burner for heating said coils said burner being supported by the tubular portion and having a fuel conduit communicating with its fuel chamber, and a heat confining shield en-1 closing said burner and coils.

` ALBERT F. HOWERY.

FREEMAN TRIP?. 

